As former Olympian-turned-councillor faces domestic assault charge, women-led advocacy group is silenced

A firestorm of controversy has been brewing in Niagara Falls, Ont., in the weeks since a former Olympian-turned-councillor was charged with domestic assault.

Mike Strange, 54, turned to politics, first elected on council in 2014, after representing Canada as a light-welterweight boxer in three Olympics. On May 3, police were called to a Niagara Falls home around 3 a.m. and found a woman with injuries. Strange was charged with domestic assault. 

In the wake of the criminal charge, Strange has continued to sit on council. He maintained his innocence during a July 8 council meeting, stating "the truth will come out," and his next court appearance is July 20. 

Meanwhile, unrelated to the Strange criminal case, a women-led advocacy group was holding delegations across Ontario about proposed Bill 9, the Municipal Accountability Act, which If passed would give municipalities more tools to crack down on negligent and misbehaving politicians. 

When Women of Ontario Say No (WOSN) requested to delegate at Niagara Falls council in June, it had begun advocating for a new addition to Bill 9: that any councillor charged with assault be placed on automatic, paid leave until it was resolved in the courts, WOSN's lead advocate, Emily McIntosh, told CBC Hamilton. (The proposed rules could see them removed from office if a series of requirements are met.)

City staff blocked WOSN from speaking about Bill 9. Then, on June 17,  Niagara police officers arrested three women in the council chambers after they refused to put away signs that said the name of the advocacy group. 

"There is, of course, an obvious and painful irony in women being arrested for peacefully holding objectively inoffensive signs, while a sitting councillor was able to remain and participate in his public role in this official capacity despite being charged with serious violent offence involving assaulting a woman and released," lawyer Susan Toth, representing WOSN, wrote in a letter to the city last week.

McIntosh said that during the public consultation period, which ends in August, the group is speaking to different councils to get their support for Bill 9 and for their ideas to strengthen it. 

For instance, automatically removing a councillor from office if found guilty would be comparable to rules applied to police officers facing criminal charges, she noted. 

McIntosh said WOSN realized they'd need to advocate for automatic leave when they learned of Strange's charge because it "showcases a gap in the legislation."

"We believe in the criminal judicial system," McIntosh said. "We're just saying it's not an appropriate space to be interacting with the public in that official role at that time." 

Niagara Falls staff denied the WOSN's delegation because "the true subject" wasn't Bill 9, but rather "an ongoing legal proceeding," according to a report by the city's chief administrative officer (CAO), solicitor and clerk. The ongoing legal proceeding is presumably that of Strange. 

McIntosh said the city's decision is "completely lacking merit," and if Strange does have a conflict of interest, he could leave for their delegation. 

CAO Jason Burgess told CBC Hamilton in an email it's not that simple because a council debate about Bill 9 could impact the criminal proceeding, although he didn't elaborate on how.